Sorry!

OMG sorry I haven't posted lately, all TWO people who follow my blog :P Which reminds me: Tell people about my blog! I mean, I hate to advertise and be all FOLLOW MY BLOG!! TELL YOUR FRIENDS!! DO IT NOW!!, but... I feel really lame when there's only two people following... but whatever.

Soooo, I haven't been too active with this lately because I started school this week. Not fun. Well, the seeing-my-friends part is awesome, but the whole homework thing? Not. Cool. At. All. Actually, I'm doing honors math homework right now, sadly. Getting a little behind... thank heaven for the weekend!! >_<;;; (Also, in case you didn't know- the little semicolons next to a smiley like that are like little sweatdrops. Like in manga. It's to show being uncomfortable or awkward. :D)

WARNING: The following book review contains **MASSIVE SPOILERS** for the book, so if you haven't read it, DON'T read this review!!

What I'm Reading: Some people might hate to hear this (I know a few who might... but they don't read this. I think. Oh well), but I've been rereading Breaking Dawn. You probably all know that the Twilight series is by Stephenie Meyer. (If you don't- where do you live, under a rock in the middle of Siberia? No offense to anyone who lives in Siberia.) Anyway, in this fourth book of the series, Bella's set and ready to tie the knot with- who else?- Edward. (Duh.) Suddenly, things take a rather unexpected turn... so what now? *dramatic music* Dun dun DUUUUUUUUNNN!!

I've had more than my fair share of near-death experiences; it wasn't something you ever really got used to.

It seemed oddly inevitable, though, facing death again. Like I really was marked for disaster. I'd escaped time and time again, but it kept coming back for me.

Still, this time was so different from the others.

You could run from someone you feared, you could try to fight someone you hated. All my reactions were geared toward those kinds of killers- the monsters, the enemies.

When you loved the one who was killing you, it left you no options. How could you run, how could you fight, when doing so would hurt that beloved one? If your life was all you had to give your beloved, how could you not give it?

If it was someone you truly loved?

Super special!!

Yes, you read that title right- this is a super special post! Why, you may be wondering? (You know you are.) Because it has both a book AND a movie review-type-thingy! *confetti explodes from nowhere* *celebratory music*

ANYWAY! I'll get on with the stuff.

What I'm Reading: Specials, by Scott Westerfeld. Specials is the third book in the Uglies series (Uglies is first, Pretties is second, Extras is fourth). In this book, Tally's special... in more ways than one. To most people in her city, they're just a rumor, but now Tally's one of them- an agent of Special Circumstances.

Here at the party's edge, a sticky bit of memory reminded her how she always felt arriving at a bash. [...] Now her mask felt clingy and strange, a barrier separating her from the world. Very unspecial. Her cheeks flashed hot for a second beneath plastic, like a rush of shame.

Shay reached out to squeeze her hand. "Don't worry, Tally-wa."

"They're only uglies," Fausto's whisper sliced through the air. "And we're right here with you." His hand rested on Tally's shoulder, gently pushing her forward.

Tally nodded, hearing the others' slow, calm breaths through the skintenna link. It was just like Shay had promised: The Cutters were connected, an unbreakable clique. She would never be alone again, even when it felt like something was missing inside her. Even when she felt the lack of Zane like head-spinning panic.

She plunged through the branches, following Shay into the flashing lights.

What I'm Watching: Well... okay, I'll let you know that this is TOTALLY unlike me. (Usually, I'm pretty darn girly. Well, in most ways, at least. Not too thrilled about a lot of pink or anything like that- my room is blue. Avoid wearing dresses. But... ah, it's hard to explain. Let's say I'm kinda girly and leave it at that.) But anyway, last night I went to go see G.I. Joe with a bunch of other people from my old school (like, five). I'll admit it- I was expecting it to be totally lame, but I'd stomach it out. But I was pleasantly surprised- it had a valid plotline, but still had about a gajillion explosions. (I think there were at least 200 explosions, but I'm not sure. I forgot to count.) All in all, it was much better than I thought it would be. I'd give it... maybe 3 out of 5 stars? Maybe 3 1/2.

Max

Can't think of much to write about... except BOOKS! ;)

What I'm Reading: Max, by James Patterson

Max is the 5th book in the Maximum Ride series. Not saying TOO much about it here, just in case some people (what people, Nightshade? You have like one person reading your blog) haven't read the rest of the series yet. But anyway, in this 5th book, Max and the rest of the flock are on a mission to rescue Dr. Martinez, with some help from old friends and new... err... not exactly friends. Not sure what to call the US navy, you know?

Suddenly it was quiet, the kind of quiet you have out in the desert in the middle of the night when everyone around you goes silent at the same time. Nudge, Iggy, Gazzy, Angel, and Total focused on me and Fang, their faces upset.

I looked from one to the next. They were really freaked, but they weren't trying to escape anything. They weren't bloody. They hadn't been in battle in the past twenty minutes.

"What. Is. Going. On?" I asked very deliberately, searching their eyes.

"It's, uh..." Nudge began, then cleared her throat. She glanced at the others, then tried again, meeting my gaze bravely. "It's your mom, Max. Dr. Martinez. She's been kidnapped. She's gone."

First Post! :D

First post! WOOHOO!! *celebratory music*

Hi there! I'm Nightshade... no, that is NOT my real name. So what is my real name? Not telling! :) Yup, that's me and my stalkerphobia. But anyway, this blog is probably going to center around- you guessed it- books. I figured, Well, reading is my favorite thing to do, so I'll make a blog about it. Every post, I'll (probably) talk about something I'm reading or one of my favorite books or something. For those of you on book overload- don't worry, I'll talk about other stuff, too, but mostly books. That way, it'll be organized chaos instead of... well... just chaos.

And before I forget, I have a question for everyone out there- is it DIET Coca-Cola or REGULAR Coca-Cola that makes Mentos explode? I can't remember, but I think it's Diet Coke. If anyone knows, post a comment and help me out! :)

What I'm Reading: River Secrets by Shannon Hale; The Magic Half by Annie Barrows

River Secrets is a part of the Books of Bayern series, written by Shannon Hale (like I said). The first is The Goose Girl, the second is Enna Burning, River Secrets is third, and a fourth is supposed to be coming out this September! *excited* I'm not sure how much I should say about this book, since it's third of a series... don't want to ruin the first two, and all that. But this series is totally awesome- it's fiction, but it's the type of fiction that's written in a way that you can believe. Sometimes I forget it's not real, and then I have to smack myself and go "Nightshade, you dork! This is fiction! Use your brain!" But then I get all sad, because it'd be WAY cool if it was nonfiction. Here's a bit from the book...

Ingridan was an ancient city. Memory ached in its stone arches, crept down its narrow alleys, sluiced through its seven rivers. And its newest memory still burned, raw and sore--a failed war, a nation shamed, and an army dishonored.

On the western edge of Ingridan, just across the Rosewater River, someone watched a man die. The man had been poor and desperate for a bit of coin, but now he was just dead, his body black from burning.

When the smoke cleared, the watcher dragged the corpse out of the nearly empty warehouse, rolled it into the river, and kept watched as it floated into the sea.

"They will pay for making me do this," spoke the voice that no one else heard. "I'll see Bayern in flames."

My sister just found The Magic Half (by Annie Barrows) at Borders last week. It doesn't seem like much, and it's a quick and easy read, but it's a pretty darn good one at that. Again, this is one of those fiction novels that's written so that it seems real (I love that kind of book).

Suddenly, Miri stopped rocking. There, in one of the many corners of her room, something glinted. Miri screwed up her eyes. It flashed like glass or a mirror. Her heart began to thump as she rose from her chair and walked toward the small, shining spot. Maybe, she thought, it's a tiny window.

But it wasn't. It was just a piece of glass, taped to the wooden board that seperated the wall from the floor. Miri knelt down to get a better look, her dark hair tumbling forward. It was shaped like the glass in a pair of eyeglasses. It was a single lens from a pair of glasses--just the lens--stuck to the paint with a strip of yellowing tape.